Maybe there's a little girl who thinks she can be an Olympic athlete, and she sees all the things I struggled through to get here. Yeah, I didn't walk away with a medal or run away with a medal, but I think there's lessons to be learned when you win and lessons to be learned when you lose.
Winning an Olympic gold medal is like nothing else.
Winning that team-pursuit Olympic gold medal was unbelievable.
An Olympic medal won't define my whole life, although it might look like it to onlookers. When I look back, I should have been able to get an Olympic medal.
All what I aimed for, except the Olympic medal, I achieved. That's why I want to start the Usha School of Athletics. I missed an Olympic medal, now I want to ensure that one of my students wins one!
The Olympics is a special event and winning is very important. For me as a world record holder and world champion, the only thing I am missing is the Olympic gold medal and that is what I want to achieve in my career.
From the time I started boxing, my dream was to win an Olympic gold medal. At 10, I can't say I knew how big the Olympics are. I just knew that every kid in the gym wanted to win an Olympic gold medal. Every kid in every gym probably wants to win an Olympic gold medal.
I was told that there are about 900 gold medal winners in American Olympic history. When I thought about the number 900, I wondered how many kids that are influenced by a gold medal ever get to see a gold medal. What I thought was really neat was that I've already had a couple hundred kids touch my gold medal.
It means a lot to be an Olympian. I'm obviously so grateful and feel so lucky I was able to achieve my dream of winning an Olympic gold medal.
Getting the degree meant more to me than an NCAA title, being named All-American or winning an Olympic gold medal.
London 2012 is all about winning a medal. Not just any medal, the gold medal.
London was the hardest Olympic Games, and before it, I was really just hoping to win a medal, even if it was not the gold medal. At the same time, I have my next target. I am not settling for three golds in a row. I now want to try for a fourth.
If you make it into an Olympic team, you're good; if you make it into an Olympic final, you're great; and if you win an Olympic medal you're a freak.
Breaking the world record in '92 was a very special personal moment, but I'd say my favorite moment as a decathlete was winning the Olympic gold medal.
I'm looking towards that Olympic medal and that Olympic gold and what it's going to take to get there.
I wouldn't say that there's ever been an Olympic champion that didn't deserve to win an Olympic Gold Medal.